Amazon.com (ISBN 0439314550, Mass Market Paperback)

If you're a Harry Potter fan who knows more about J.K. Rowling than you know about most of your own family, then you won't find much new in this slim, large-type book. But younger kids (and Muggle grownups hoping for some insight into the world of Harry Potter) will learn quite a bit about this phenomenally successful series and its unassuming author.

Divided into roughly three sections, Conversations with J.K. Rowling begins with some fairly general questions about the author's early childhood ("Did you have any pets?"), school days ("Did you watch much television as a child?"), and career ("Can you describe the process of creating the stories?"). The book then follows with an excerpt-assisted overview of the first four Harry Potter adventures (again, great for Muggles), and ends with a smattering of quotes from Rowling's interviews with Larry King, Newsweek, Oprah Winfrey's O magazine, and Entertainment Weekly.

Kids will get a kick out of many of the anecdotes (Rowling can't remember her little sister's birth, just eating the Play-Doh that she was given that day to distract her), while older readers should enjoy more sophisticated insights into her books (like how she decided to write full-time when she still had a daughter to support). Certainly a light (and quick) read, but fun for what it is. (Ages 9 to 12) --Paul Hughes